January 19: National Popcorn Day
What is there to say about popcorn? It’s pretty darn great. In all, forms actually… air popped, oil popped, microwave, kettle corn, jiffy pop, caramel corn, cheddar popcorn, covered in weird yellow oil at the movie theater… popcorn is cool!
Tomorrow: National Granola Bar Day
January 18: Peking Duck Day
What does everyone think of when they think of Peking duck?
They think of that scene from A Christmas Story where they go to a Chinese restaurant for Christmas dinner and the duck comes out with its head on, and then the dude decapitates it in front of them. At least that’s what I think about when I think of Peking duck.
I was happy that Peking duck fell on a Friday and I was able to round up a group of folks to head to Chinatown in San Francisco with me for some authentic Peking duck. And some authentic Mai Tais, because apparently Chinese people (or people who hang out in Chinatown) love themselves some Mai Tais.
This is half of a duck. It didn’t come with a head. As I’d heard, it’s super fatty. You use those little bun things to make sandwiches with duck, onions and sauce (duck sauce? probably?). It was okay. I liked the crispy skin, but the fattiness kind of grossed me out. I will stick to the Mai Tais.
Me, a Mai Tai, and the best take-out bag ever (a horse carousel for Year of the Horse!)
Tomorrow: National Popcorn Day
January 17: Hot Buttered Rum Day
What is hot buttered rum? It’s exactly what you’d think it is. Hot rum with some butter in it.
Does this look appetizing? It’s butter, sugar and some spices (cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves) and rum. DRINK UP!
Just kidding. This is the finished product. It wasn’t bad! It reminded me of boozy chai. I might have been more inclined to drink it all if I was snowed in someplace, but when I made this it was 75 degrees outside. Thanks, California, for ruining my hot buttered rum experience. (No, really, thanks!)
Tomorrow: Peking Duck Day
January 16: National Fig Newton Day
It’s such a bummer that this isn’t just “newton” day. I thoroughly enjoy an apple newton. It’s like a mini little pie! A package is rows of miniature apple pies, just for you!
But fig newtons are gross. Their seeds are crunchy and it makes me think I’m eating bugs. Not that I’m opposed to eating bugs, it’s just I’d like them to be up front about it and not hide little crunchy bugs in fig goo.
Tomorrow: Hot Buttered Rum Day
January 15: Strawberry Ice Cream Day
It’s not until you buy one of these “single serving” ice cream dealies that you realize your typical portions would feed a family of four.
Tomorrow: National Fig Newton Day
January 14: National Meat Month & National Wheat Bread Month
Technically, January 14 is National Hot Pastrami Sandwich Day, but either Subway doesn’t have pastrami, or they were out, or the person working there didn’t know anything about sandwiches and doesn’t deserve to be called a Sandwich Artist. So, Plan B: celebrate Meat Month and Wheat Bread Month simultaneously.
Tomorrow: Strawberry Ice Cream Day
January 13: National Peach Melba Day
I had no idea what a peach melba was. I thought it might have something to do with melba toast, which grossed me out. Peaches and crunchy little toasts?? Wah.
But NO! A peach melba is vanilla ice cream covered in peaches poached in sugary vanilla syrup and raspberry sauce! So much better than a peach on a melba toast, and infinitely better than Melba Toast Gibson.
Tomorrow: National Meat Month/National Wheat Bread Month
January 12: Curried Chicken Day
Is “curried chicken” a thing? Or did they just mean “curry with chicken in it”? I took it to mean “curry with chicken in it”, because it gave me an excuse to order my favorite thing from our favorite Thai food place.
I love Thai food. Growing up Thai food wasn’t a “thing”, at least not in suburban Chicago (or maybe I’m wrong and it was a thing everywhere except my family). I remember going out for Thai food a few times in high school… we’d venture into Chicago on the El and I’d order Thai fried rice because it was the one thing that was remotely familiar to me, a Americanized Chinese food aficionado. In college, my life was filled with nachos and noodles (… some things never change?) but I can’t recall ever going out for Thai with my lovely roommates, or anyone else for that matter. It wasn’t until I got my first job post college that getting Thai became a regular thing for me. My boss would take us out for Thai on a sort of regular basis; I fell in love with Pad Kee Mao, and how the chilis made my upper lip sweaty. I was hooked.
I eventually branched out and stopped getting noodles constantly and started ordering curries. My all-time favorite is massaman curry… a wonderful combination of curry, spice, coconut milk, potatoes and peanuts. And that my friends, is what is pictured above. It’s a lot prettier than this photo might suggest. I should have used a non-orange bowl.
Tomorrow: National Peach Melba Day
January 11: Milk Day
Milk. It belongs in cereal. It belongs in scrambled eggs. It belongs in hot chocolate. But who actually drinks a glass of milk past the age of five? Okay, let me rephrase… who actually drinks a glass of milk if cake or pie isn’t involved? The answer is no one. And freaks. Sorry to any freaks out there who read my blog. I’m sure you’re a nice person.
Here is some milk in a snifter.
Tomorrow: Curried Chicken Day
(I just realized that sometimes I like a glass of really cold chocolate milk. Does this make me a freak?)
January 10: Bittersweet Chocolate Day
When it comes to chocolate, give me milk or give me death. What’s up with all these fancy candy bars that boast higher and higher cocoa percentages? Why would I spend $7 on a candy bar that tastes like a $2 bar of Baker’s baking chocolate (gross), when I could spend $0.80 on a Hershey’s bar? Hmph.
I tried to make today ~fun~. If I have to eat bittersweet chocolate (WHY, GOD, WHY?), I might as well eat BBQ potato chip bittersweet chocolate, right?
Wrong.
Not tasty. Not good. Not Hershey’s. Hershey’s > “American Farms & Artisans”.
Tomorrrow: Milk Day
